Murder of Leanne Tiernan
[3] Tiernan's body was discovered on 20 August 2001, in dense woodland just 50 yards (46 m) from a busy car park at Lindley Woods near Otley, on the border of North and West Yorkshire.[2] On 3 April 2003, following a police review of unsolved sexual attacks in the area, Taylor pleaded guilty to two separate rapes committed before the schoolgirl's murder and received a further sentence of life imprisonment with a recommended minimum of 30 years.[11] The police immediately began a missing person inquiry, headed by Detective Superintendent Chris Gregg, and a search of the area where Tiernan was last seen was undertaken, although no trace of her was found.More than 1,400 house-to-house inquiries were conducted, and 800 houses along her probable route—designated by the police as "Red Route"—were searched, along with 800 sheds, garages and outbuildings and 150 commercial premises within a half-mile radius of Houghley Gill.DNA samples were taken from 140 men interviewed by the police in connection with the inquiry and twelve search warrants were executed at various addresses in Leeds.[3] A local businessman offered a £10,000 reward for information leading to her safe return, and supermarket chain Iceland printed her picture and details on milk cartons sold at its stores nationwide.[9] On 4 December 2000, police released an E-FIT facial composite of a man who had been seen walking a dog in the Houghley Gill area shortly before Tiernan disappeared.He was described as being "5 feet 8 inches tall and of stocky build with a round, reddish face that may possibly be scarred... wearing a black woollen hat, a three-quarter-length waterproof jacket and dirty jeans."[13] On 20 August 2001, Tiernan's body was found by Mark Bisson, who was walking his two dogs in Lindley Woods, North Yorkshire, 100 yards (91 m) from where another murder victim, Yvonne Fitt, had been discovered buried in 1992.(1956-08-27)27 August 1956, Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire) was a parcel delivery worker for Parcelforce, and lived on the same housing estate as Tiernan, within a mile of where she was last seen alive.[7][21][26][27] A former girlfriend, who had briefly lived with Taylor, told police that she had often visited Lindley Woods with him while they were dating, and that she had eventually broke off the relationship with him because of his bondage fetish and the feeling "that she was being raped.[30] The gardens were then excavated and the property, including three large chest freezers, subjected to a rigorous examination over a period of ten days.On 15 February 2002, Taylor appeared before Mr. Justice Poole at Leeds Crown Court and entered a plea of guilty with respect to the abduction of Leanne Tiernan.[21] He was not asked to enter a plea on the charge of murder, pending a separate Newton hearing, and was remanded into custody awaiting the trial.Although Taylor initially refused to cooperate with the police, the DNA evidence was overwhelming, and he eventually pleaded guilty to both rapes on 4 February 2003 at Leeds Crown Court.[8][35] Judge Norman Jones QC, the Recorder of Leeds, sentenced him to two terms of life imprisonment and "expressly dis-applied early release provisions".Many prisoners, and surely John Taylor is likely to be one, are in fact detained for many years after their tariff has expired, indeed it may be that he presents such a risk that he could never safely be released, but that is for others to decide in due course.